233 new COVID-19 cases in Singapore, 7 new clusters including MBS restaurant and McDonald’s

SINGAPORE: Singapore reported 233 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday (Apr 12), taking its total number of cases to 2,532. 

Of the new cases, 51 are linked to known clusters while 15 are linked to earlier cases, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) in its daily update.

The remaining 167 cases are pending contact tracing. Of the 167 cases, 141 are work permit holders, mostly residing in dormitories, work sites and other living quarters, said MOH. 

Sixteen cases are Singaporeans or permanent residents and 10 are work pass or long-term pass holders “residing in our community”, the health ministry added.

Seven new clusters were found, including one linked to the Black Tap restaurant at Marina Bay Sands, another linked to fast food chain McDonald’s, and others linked to foreign worker dormitories Tuas View Dormitory and 85 Kallang Dormitory. 

Black Tap – a restaurant known for its burgers and milkshakes – is linked to eight cases, while McDonald’s is linked to five infections.

Tuas View Dormitory and 85 Kallang Dormitory have eight and five infections respectively.

The remaining clusters are linked to Acacia Lodge at Bukit Batok Street 23 (15 cases), as well as 36 Woodlands Industrial Park E1 (20 cases) and a Kenyon/UBS construction site at 9 Penang Road which has eight cases. 

Acacia Lodge is one of the latest foreign worker dormitories to be gazetted as an isolation area, meaning residents will have to be quarantined in their rooms.

READ: Five McDonald’s workers diagnosed with COVID-19

INTERACTIVE: All the COVID-19 clusters at dorms and construction sites 

On Sunday, MOH said that 32 more cases have been discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities. In all, 560 have fully recovered.

Of the 976 patients who are still in hospital, most are stable or improving, while 31 are in critical condition in the intensive care unit.

There are 988 cases who are clinically well but still test positive for COVID-19 being isolated and cared for at community facilities. The death toll still stands at eight.

MORE CASES REPORTED AT FOREIGN WORKER DORMS

More cases have also been reported at existing clusters, include numerous foreign worker dormitories.

Thirty additional cases were linked to the S11 Dormitory @ Punggol, which now has a total of 365 confirmed cases – the biggest cluster in Singapore.

Seven additional cases were linked to the cluster at Westlite Toh Guan dormitory, which now has 76 cases.

Five more cases were linked to Toh Guan Dormitory, taking its total to 45, while 17 more cases were linked to Sungei Tengah Lodge, which now has 80 cases.

One additional case was linked to Tampines Dormitory, taking its total to 51. Four more cases were linked to Kranji Lodge, which now has 13 confirmed cases.

Ten additional cases were linked to Cochrane Lodge I and six additional cases to Cochrane Lodge II, taking their totals to 32 and 17 respectively.

Eight additional cases were linked to Shaw Lodge, which now has 16 cases, and four additional cases were linked to Cassia @ Penjuru, which now has nine cases.

Two more cases were linked to a cluster at 31 Sungei Kadut Avenue and 21B Senoko Loop, which now has 11 cases.

Four more cases were linked to a construction site at Project Glory, which now has 46 cases.

Four additional cases were linked to renovations sites at the National University Hospital, which now has 20 confirmed cases.

Mustafa Centre was linked to four additional cases, taking its total to 82. 

One additional case was linked to wedding venue The Orange Ballroom, which now has five cases.

READ: COVID-19: 2 more dormitories declared as isolation areas

READ: PM Lee appeals to older Singaporeans to stay at home during COVID-19 ‘circuit breaker’ period

NUMBER OF IMPORTED CASES HAS COME DOWN TO ZERO

MOH also gave an overview of the trend in daily COVID-19 cases based on different transmission types.

The number of imported cases rose around mid-March due to a large number of returnees, but has since come down to zero, said the ministry.

The number of cases in the community increased following a wave of new imported cases but has seen some moderation in recent days. This is in light of safe distancing measures put in place earlier, said MOH.

However, the number of work permit and dormitory-related cases has increased sharply and this is likely to go up, “especially as we undertake more aggressive testing in dormitories”, said MOH.

READ:  COVID-19: 2 more dormitories declared as isolation areas

Contact tracing for the confirmed cases is ongoing. As of noon on Saturday, MOH has identified 28,140 close contacts who have been quarantined. Of these, 12,088 are currently quarantined, and 16,052 have completed their quarantine.

Authorities further tightened circuit breaker measures on Saturday, recommending that commuters wear masks on public transport and closing all beaches.

Markets will also refuse entry to people not wearing face masks and food outlets will face fines if their workers do not wear masks or face shields.

During the circuit breaker period, which lasts from Apr 7 to May 4, Singaporeans are to leave their homes only for essential activities such as buying food and groceries.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Friday appealed to older Singaporeans to stay at home for their own safety during the “circuit breaker” period.

The country on Saturday confirmed its eighth death due to complications from the novel coronavirus.

Case 1142, a 90-year-old Singaporean man, died from complications due to COVID-19 infection on Saturday morning. 

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